The newspaper business was built for a world where one product served everyone and advertising paid for most of it. That model has gone. What replaces it is still being worked out title by title, from national groups to weeklies covering a single town.
Reader revenue is the clearest shift. Even Reach, which argued for free access for years, now puts some of its journalism behind a paywall, and the regional titles doing best changed their newsrooms before they asked anyone to pay. Ownership keeps changing too. National World rebuilt local editorships after years of centralisation, and the Observer is being reinvented as a premium print and digital title under new owners.
The strongest publishers understand the difference because they are not trying to be everything to everyone. They are trying to be essential to someone.
Chris Sherrard News media
Local news is where the pressure shows most. Millions of people now live without a dedicated local title, and new reader-funded and membership startups are moving into the gaps. Platforms are pulling back from news at the same time, which leaves trust and a direct relationship with readers as the assets that matter most.
Print hasn't disappeared either. Well-run weeklies still hold on to their readers, with circulation falling slowly while digital audiences grow.
Below you'll find some of our best feature articles on news media, from reader revenue and newsroom change to ownership, local news and trust, alongside our latest news and industry commentary.
Where is the growth opportunity for today’s publishers? Douglas McCabe tracks how the commercial model has evolved over the past fifty years and examines whether a better understanding of what online audiences want, will help drive future growth.
We asked Chris Sherrard, editor-in-chief of The Irish News, what does best practice publishing look like in news media? This is what he said…
After years of resisting paywalls, Reach is now launching them across its titles. But David Higgerson, Reach’s chief content officer, carefully avoided the word ‘U-turn’ when interviewed by Steve Dyson.
It’s one thing to think that readers should pay for your journalism, but the reality is that unless you improve your offering, then you will struggle to start charging for it, as DC Thomson Editor-in-Chief Frank O’Donnell tells Ciar Byrne.
How can you edit a regional newspaper when you never visit the area you’re writing about? By filling it with generic content, an approach that National World’s David Montgomery, the new owner of JPI Media, is rapidly doing away with.
Ray Snoddy talks to Co-CEO Rich Furness about the thinking behind Tortoise Media’s acquisition of the world’s oldest Sunday newspaper and about their plans for its future.
What’s the outlook for national news media in 2024? Christian Broughton, CEO of The Independent, looks ahead.
There is a new generation of entrepreneurs launching local media businesses, bringing with them new ideas on business models and funding. Phil Clark looks at some of the stand-out examples.
With Meta backing away from ‘news’ and AI accelerating the growth of disinformation, we need to redouble our efforts to safeguard access to quality journalism, says News Media Association Chief Executive Owen Meredith.
East Lothian is not just the best place to live – it has the best newsbrand too. Alan Geere heads over the border to find out what’s happening in the world of Scottish weeklies.
The multichannel campaign’s next phase, coming to New York’s Moynihan Station and London’s Bank Station, builds on a first wave that drove measurable Bloomberg.com subscriber awareness and intent.
The shortlist has been announced for the Society of Editors’ Media Freedom Awards 2026.
Reach plc has announced that it is to close three of its online brands and cut a number of editorial roles.
Local media group Newsquest has announced two new editors in Dorset and Somerset.
IPSO has submitted its response to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s consultation on a proposed prominence framework for trusted and public service news online.
David White joins Mail Metro Media to build an in-house creator talent agency for brand partnerships.
Teams from across the newstrade are being invited to go head-to-head in a virtual trivia challenge this autumn in support of industry charity NewstrAid.
Last week NUJ parliamentary group chair Rebecca Long-Bailey put forward the union’s calls to protect public service broadcasting and independent journalism.
The 2025/26 statutory accounts reveal that digital reader revenue is up 17% with 15% growth in US operations.
The NMA says the government should back the CMA to tackle the market power of large technology platforms rather than implementing a prominence regime.
The Guardian has announced Derren Lawford as executive producer for Guardian Studios, the new creative hub for video-first, personality-led journalism.
A new revitalised audience measurement platform for the local news media sector called Regional Audience Intelligence Data is due to launch in the coming weeks, enabling media planners to see local more clearly.
Reach has announced the launch of paid community sites for Southport Visiter and The Journal.
Subscribers can now enjoy fresh spins on Wordle, the Mini, Connections and more every week.
Kate Forbes joins The Times and The Sunday Times as new columnist.
